parish church. If these two churches were not the same, the parish church was at least a part of the priory church. The repeated mention of the old church would imply, that, the parochial church was made to serve the Priory; and was indeed the ecclesia Sanctæ Mariæ juxta Castellum, which Robert de Todeni had originally founded.

The place where the founders of religious houses were most generally deposited, was the chapter house. In that situation in Belvoir Priory the coffin of Robert de Todeni was dug up, in 1726, and seen by Dr. Stukely: and twice again in 1792; the last time, June 6, when in the presence of Messrs. Gough, Peters, Mounsey, Pridden, Charles Turner, and Nichols, the coffin was again opened, and found to contain four sculls, and various leg, thigh, arm, and collar bones, ribs, vertebræ, an os ischion, and others. The founder's scull in its recess or niche, was distinguishable from the rest by the perfect state in which it remained, wanting only the under jaw, and the teeth of the upper, and it was thick and sound. The larger tibiæ were likewise his. At his right hand lies a stone coffin, of the same form, dimensions, and substance, with his, but without inscription, and when opened, no bones were found in it. The coffin of the founder is of brown stone, six feet and a half by two feet and a half, tapering to sixteen inches, and eight inches thick. The ridge down the middle does not reach to the end by a foot. The coffin on the right hand, of similar materials, and ridged like the other but without inscription, is that of William de Albini I., or Brito.

Many ancient leaden coffins were transferred from the Priory, to Bottesford Church, and are still carefully preserved there. The whole body as if wrapt in rollers all together, (with hands and feet unseparated,) will give a good idea of one of these coffins.

A laborious tracing of the foundations, combined with a